New York City prepares to close public schools for Muslim holidays, Lunar New Year

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced plans to implement a policy allowing public schools to close for two major Muslim holidays and the Lunar New Year.

However, de Blasio also indicated that the Hindu festival Diwali may not reach a level of ethnic and multicultural importance to suit his vacation-day fancy, reports the Daily News.

The mayor said he is still deciding if Diwali should rate as a public school holiday.

“It is complicated in terms of logistics and school calendar and budget,” de Blasio said of the school closings he has decided to endorse. “But it’s something I want to get done in a reasonable time frame.”

The Muslim holidays when Big Apples schools will be able to shut down are Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.

Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan and has no set date.

Eid al-Adha occurs in the fall and honors Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son on God’s command. As part of the holiday, Muslims who can afford it are expected to sacrifice their best domestic animal (cow, goat, camel, sheep, etc., depending on the region).

Estimates of the number of Muslims in New York City vary between 200,000 and 1,000,000. A website called A Journey Through NYC Religions guesstimates the number to be 600,000—roughly seven percent of the population.

The Lunar New Year is an important holiday in China and other East Asian nations. The date varies, but it’s in the winter.

According to a press release from Democrat Sheldon Silver, Speaker of the New York State Assembly, one in six New York City public school students is Asian American.

At schools in New York City neighborhoods with large concentrations of Asian American residents, a large percentage of students stay home on the Lunar New Year. Under the current policy, these students receive excused absences.